Seahawks could pursue Aldon Smith (Florio's Speculation)

[Scottemojo]

When did he get suspended? To my knowledge that hasn't happened yet and when did the league start taking action before a case has been seen in court?

We see this all the time where a player gets arrested but pushes the case out as long as possible and continues playing.

So unless I am missing something I wouldn't be surprised at all if he signed and played for a team all year before getting his day in court.

Nope.

Ben Roethlisberger got suspended without a court decision. Last year, Peterson and Hardy go suspended, WITH PAY, without a court decision.

Any team that signs Smith has to be worried Roger will sit him with pay. Which is why any team taht signs him has to be thinking 2016 only.

Does Cali still have the three strikes thing?

 

[Basis4day]

When did he get suspended? To my knowledge that hasn't happened yet and when did the league start taking action before a case has been seen in court?

We see this all the time where a player gets arrested but pushes the case out as long as possible and continues playing.

So unless I am missing something I wouldn't be surprised at all if he signed and played for a team all year before getting his day in court.

Nope.

Ben Roethlisberger got suspended without a court decision. Last year, Peterson and Hardy go suspended, WITH PAY, without a court decision.

Any team that signs Smith has to be worried Roger will sit him with pay. Which is why any team taht signs him has to be thinking 2016 only.

Does Cali still have the three strikes thing?

The NFL usually likes to wait for a some sort of initial resolution of a criminal matter, not necessarily a court decision (For instance, the police declining to press charges).

The DA in Georgia declined to press charges against Roethlesburger. He was suspended about two weeks later.

Hardy's initial bench trial resulted in a guilty verdict and he appealed. He was put on the NFL’s Exempt/Commissioner’s Permission list. He wasn't technically suspended as he still got his salary. His next case was dismissed after his accuser refused to appear and testify. Then he got the 10 game suspension later reduced to 4.

Peterson also was put on the NFL’s Exempt/Commissioner’s Permission list and continued to receive his salary. He wasn't suspended until after he pleaded no contest.

 

[RiverDog]

Does Cali still have the three strikes thing?

They do, but it only applies to violent crimes and other serious felonies.

 

[Hawkfan77]

The Seahawks are too classy of an organization to pursue Aldon Smith. Aldon is a 25 year old dude who acts like an 8 year old, with behavior issues off the field, he has a drinking problem and he has been in & out of jail 5 times while with the Niners. Imvho, the Seahawks are now the "class" of the NFC West, don't get involved in the dysfunctional 49ers mess.

Yea, right. We drafted Frank Clark as our first overall pick then our GM told little white lies about how thorough our investigation of him was. We gave serious consideration to bringing in Greg Hardy. We traded for Percy Harvin even though there was substantial evidence that he was a cancer. We even gave the worst locker room cancer in two decades, T.O., a look-see.

Pete and John are no different than any other HC/GM. They'd make a pact with the Devil if they thought he could help them win a Lombardi.

Welp this just isn't true but oh well

 

[rideaducati]

Of all the charges this guy has gotten out of, this charge looks to be the easiest one to get dismissed. I think Aldon might even get away without even being suspended.

 

[hawknation2015]

Of all the charges this guy has gotten out of, this charge looks to be the easiest one to get dismissed. I think Aldon might even get away without even being suspended.

Even if the charges are dismissed, he will definitely be suspended. He is not permitted to drink under the terms of the NFL's alcohol program. The police report said he failed field sobriety and Breathalyzer tests.

He hit a parked car and then fled the scene. If he was not drunk at the time that he hit the car, it was very idiotic of him to then flee the scene, get drunk, and then return to the scene two hours later. He's looking at a suspension just for the alcohol, and then the hit and run and possible DUI also have to be considered.

 

[rideaducati]

Of all the charges this guy has gotten out of, this charge looks to be the easiest one to get dismissed. I think Aldon might even get away without even being suspended.

Even if the charges are dismissed, he will definitely be suspended. He is not permitted to drink under the terms of the NFL's alcohol program. The police report said he failed field sobriety and Breathalyzer tests.

He hit a parked car and then fled the scene. If he was not drunk at the time that he hit the car, it was very idiotic of him to then flee the scene, get drunk, and then return to the scene two hours later. He's looking at a suspension just for the alcohol, and then the hit and run and possible DUI also have to be considered.

The new charges still pale in comparison to federal gun charges and he got away with those. Where did you find the failed breathalyzer? Field sobriety tests don't mean much. People that are tired fail those a good amount of times. Aldon says it isn't a DUI, so maybe it isn't a DUI.

Was Aldon even in the NFL alcohol program? He went to rehab on his own.

 

[hawknation2015]

Of all the charges this guy has gotten out of, this charge looks to be the easiest one to get dismissed. I think Aldon might even get away without even being suspended.

Even if the charges are dismissed, he will definitely be suspended. He is not permitted to drink under the terms of the NFL's alcohol program. The police report said he failed field sobriety and Breathalyzer tests.

He hit a parked car and then fled the scene. If he was not drunk at the time that he hit the car, it was very idiotic of him to then flee the scene, get drunk, and then return to the scene two hours later. He's looking at a suspension just for the alcohol, and then the hit and run and possible DUI also have to be considered.

The new charges still pale in comparison to federal gun charges and he got away with those. Where did you find the failed breathalyzer? Field sobriety tests don't mean much. People that are tired fail those a good amount of times. Aldon says it isn't a DUI, so maybe it isn't a DUI.

Was Aldon even in the NFL alcohol program? He went to rehab on his own.

The report says in addition to the failed field sobriety test, he also took a PAS Breathalyzer test, but Santa Clara has a policy of not disclosing the specific BAC.

Yes, he is in the alcohol program due to his two previous DUIs -- with this most recent one being the 3rd. He is tested twice a week for alcohol and has passed those tests. But there have been plenty of rumors of him violating the program, drinking at Ray McDonald's house, etc.

The failed field sobriety test, in addition to the Breathalyzer test (as long as his BAC reading was not zero) will be enough for the NFL to suspend him for violating the terms of the alcohol program. That would be true even if he is not convicted for another DUI.

 

[RichNhansom]

Again that is if the DA releases the breathalyzer results and or presses charges.

I won't be surprised in the least if he plays this season and gets dealt with next.

 

[Popeyejones]

The Niners have had 12 Players arrested within 3 years?! No other NFL team has had that many players with that many arrest.

Just as a point of clarification, it's 12 arrests, not 12 players arrested -- five or six of those were all Aldon Smith.

Under Baalke's tenure (the last five years) they have 12 arrests. IIRC the league leader is around 14, and the Hawks have 9.

 

[Popeyejones]

Aldon is talented.
But he isn't going to be available to a single team until next year, most likely, making this whole discussion pretty much moot.

Correct me if I'm wrong (and I very well could be), but the NFL only suspends rostered players, right?

This would mean that as a FA Aldon would just sit around, and then when/if he gets signed by someone the NFL will levy his suspension.


(That's a sincere correct me if I'm wrong, BTW, I'm just going off memory).

 

[SoulfishHawk]

I think you're right, whatever team swoops him up will be getting him and waiting for him to serve his suspension.
Obviously that drives the price way down. Too bad he has so many issues off the field, he's a hell of a player.

 

[Popeyejones]

^^^^ Yeah, and if that's the case, assuming he gets a year long suspension and nobody is signing him this year, we're basically talking about him playing 1/2 season (in which he didn't really perform) of football in the last 3 1/2 years. That's a long time away.

TBH I think he clearly has a problem, and just feel really bad for the guy.

 

[RiverDog]

Aldon is talented.
But he isn't going to be available to a single team until next year, most likely, making this whole discussion pretty much moot.

Correct me if I'm wrong (and I very well could be), but the NFL only suspends rostered players, right?

This would mean that as a FA Aldon would just sit around, and then when/if he gets signed by someone the NFL will levy his suspension.


(That's a sincere correct me if I'm wrong, BTW, I'm just going off memory).

Didn't the Falcons release Michael Vick before/during his suspension?

The league obviously can't fine them if they are not on the roster, but they can damn sure bar them from signing with another team.

 

[RiverDog]

Of all the charges this guy has gotten out of, this charge looks to be the easiest one to get dismissed. I think Aldon might even get away without even being suspended.

Even if the charges are dismissed, he will definitely be suspended. He is not permitted to drink under the terms of the NFL's alcohol program. The police report said he failed field sobriety and Breathalyzer tests.

He hit a parked car and then fled the scene. If he was not drunk at the time that he hit the car, it was very idiotic of him to then flee the scene, get drunk, and then return to the scene two hours later. He's looking at a suspension just for the alcohol, and then the hit and run and possible DUI also have to be considered.

The new charges still pale in comparison to federal gun charges and he got away with those. Where did you find the failed breathalyzer? Field sobriety tests don't mean much. People that are tired fail those a good amount of times. Aldon says it isn't a DUI, so maybe it isn't a DUI.

Was Aldon even in the NFL alcohol program? He went to rehab on his own.

The report says in addition to the failed field sobriety test, he also took a PAS Breathalyzer test, but Santa Clara has a policy of not disclosing the specific BAC.

Yes, he is in the alcohol program due to his two previous DUIs -- with this most recent one being the 3rd. He is tested twice a week for alcohol and has passed those tests. But there have been plenty of rumors of him violating the program, drinking at Ray McDonald's house, etc.

The failed field sobriety test, in addition to the Breathalyzer test (as long as his BAC reading was not zero) will be enough for the NFL to suspend him for violating the terms of the alcohol program. That would be true even if he is not convicted for another DUI.

I'm not sure how CA law works, but many states elevate a DUI to a felony after a certain number of them within a certain period of time. I don't think he currently has 2 on his record, but since he was still on probation, they could change them to a DUI if he's convicted of this one. If he's guilty, he almost certainly will be spending some time eating off a tin plate.

Every police department in the United States has a policy of giving some sort of BAC test to a DUI suspect, so Smith was undoubtedly tested in Santa Clara or refused to do so, which would be worse than failing. One can deduce that he must have registered something or else he wouldn't have been charged. We can also deduce that the Niners must have had information indicating he registered more than an insignificant amount on his BAC or else they wouldn't have released him so quickly. They couldn't trade him because he was only under contract this season and every team in the league realizes that he won't be available in 2015 after which he becomes a free agent. Smith not only screwed himself, he screwed his team BIG TIME.

 

[Popeyejones]

Bottom line is that the guy is done for 2015.

Yep. Even if not legally, purely from a PR perspective I think he'll be iced out from an NFL roster for 2015 regardless.

FWIW, I have no idea how it factors into your thoughts about DUIs and CA law, but if it matters, one of his two prior DUIs was in Florida, not CA.

Re: Vick, good point too. Like many things, maybe what I'm assuming to be a "rule" comes down to the same thing all punishment seems to come down to in the NFL these days: the whims of Goodell.

When Smith voluntarily missed half a season to go into rehab (and then sit out) Goodell didn't count it, but who the heck knows what he'll do if Smith sits out the year this year. My guess is he slaps him with four games or something when/if he signs somewhere even though the "rules" wouldn't dictate that.

 

[RiverDog]

Bottom line is that the guy is done for 2015.

Yep. Even if not legally, purely from a PR perspective I think he'll be iced out from an NFL roster for 2015 regardless.

FWIW, I have no idea how it factors into your thoughts about DUIs and CA law, but if it matters, one of his two prior DUIs was in Florida, not CA.

Re: Vick, good point too. Like many things, maybe what I'm assuming to be a "rule" comes down to the same thing all punishment seems to come down to in the NFL these days: the whims of Goodell.

When Smith voluntarily missed half a season to go into rehab (and then sit out) Goodell didn't count it, but who the heck knows what he'll do if Smith sits out the year this year. My guess is he slaps him with four games or something when/if he signs somewhere even though the "rules" wouldn't dictate that.

It won't matter to the court which state he got his DUI's in. They all have the same standards now, .8 BAC, so it's apples and apples to them. I do believe that he received deferred prosecution on at least one of them, which means they can at their discretion elevate it to a DUI if he's convicted of a subsequent one within a certain period of time. He's more than likely going to have 3 of them on his record when all the dust settles. If he has 3, he stands a good chance of having this third one count as a felony crime.

As far as Goodell goes, yes, he does have almost absolute power regarding player discipline. But he's no different than any other commissioner in any other professional sport in that regard. It's been that way ever since MLB had their Black Sox scandal nearly 100 years ago. The Commissioner is the judge, jury, and executioner, and personally, I'm OK with that.

 

[OrFan]

Of course it is just my opinion, but I will bet he will not be available for any team a year from now. I have a feeling he will end up dead in a ditch, or in jail for a long time for killing someone else.

The stuff we have heard of is only what could not be hidden. How many other problems has he had?

What a waste of talent on a piece of garbage like him.

 

[olyfan63]

The Seahawks are too classy of an organization to pursue Aldon Smith. Aldon is a 25 year old dude who acts like an 8 year old, with behavior issues off the field, he has a drinking problem and he has been in & out of jail 5 times while with the Niners. Imvho, the Seahawks are now the "class" of the NFC West, don't get involved in the dysfunctional 49ers mess.

Yea, right. We drafted Frank Clark as our first overall pick then our GM told little white lies about how thorough our investigation of him was. We gave serious consideration to bringing in Greg Hardy. We traded for Percy Harvin even though there was substantial evidence that he was a cancer. We even gave the worst locker room cancer in two decades, T.O., a look-see.

Pete and John are no different than any other HC/GM. They'd make a pact with the Devil if they thought he could help them win a Lombardi.

It wouldn't shock me if Pete & John had a cup off coffee with him, see where his head's at.

I don't doubt that at all. Pete pretty much thinks he could salvage anyone but he and John better keep in mind what happened with Percy this could be as bad in a different way.

The Aldon Smith situation has ZERO in common with the Greg Hardy and Frank Clark situations.
Greg Hardy and Frank Clark situations are about foisting politicized social agenda propaganda on NFL fans.
In the case of both Hardy and Clark, we are talking guys who work their asses off, are great teammates, who got ensnared in a he-said, she-said situation. In both cases the "evidence" was extremely weak. In Hardy's case, his accuser appears to be a sociopathic celebrity chaser and professional liar/damsel in distress. Refer to the Hardy threads for more about that.

The Aldon Smith situation involves repeated, persistent, out-of-control, detrimental-to-the-team conduct. This is a factor in common with the Percy Harvin situation with Seattle.


Percy Harvin, IMO, has a mental illness, and was, is, and always will be, a cancer. Percy Harvin is a sick individual, I have shared that his history and behavior checks all the boxes for Borderline Personality Disorder. See the assorted Harvin threads for much more detail on that. (If he gets help, maybe this could improve; I say unlikely; not everyone can do what Brandon Marshall has done.) Pete "Father Flanagan" Carroll learned a lesson on Harvin. I think Pete learned profoundly from that (recognizing personality disorder vs. bad environment/lack of guidance) and will never repeat that error.

The Cowboys made an extremely smart play by picking up Greg Hardy, and the Seahawks made an extremely smart play by drafting Frank Clark. Whatever your opinion about the controversial situations involving these two players, the problems they went through are *extremely unlikely* to be repeated in any way, shape, or form.

Aldon Smith has an alcohol addiction and persistent related problems, and has shown NO ABILITY to control his self-destructive behavior. 3 DUI's? Are you kidding me? 3 DUI's? Smith just needs to have a sober DAY. (Repeated in Jim Mora Sr. "Playoffs?" tone and rythm)

Neither Hardy nor Clark appears to have issues remotely resembling the pervasive personal issues affecting Harvin and Smith. The only thing in common is the media poopstorm campaign targeted at Hardy and Clark. I predict both Hardy and Clark with have *Outstanding* seasons, Hardy being all-pro, and Clark being all-rookie and maybe all-pro too.

A gamble on an untreated, unrecovered Aldon Smith is an all-around bad idea for the Seahawks.

 

[RiverDog]

I'm not going to say that we made and "extremely smart" decision to draft Clark. We won't know that for at least a year. But I am OK with drafting him if we were comfortable with the off field issue he had. My whole problem with the Clark situation was the manner in which we defended drafting him, claiming that we did a thorough investigation when it clearly was a very brief one. Schneider's performance was awful, on the verge of lying.

Whether or not you want to consider what Percy Harvin has as a mental illness is again a matter of opinion. My point was that as a very broad category, I would consider him a poor teammate ala T.O. and differentiate his category apart guys like Hardy, Adrian Peterson, Aldon Smith, and others in that they never had any issues in the locker room or were difficult to coach.

If Smith can negotiate all the hurdles that are likely to be set up for him and if Pete and the other coaches are satisfied that his recovery is genuine, then I'd be more than willing to be the team that gives him a second chance.